Morocco’s Royal Armed Forces Deploy Extensive Aerial Fleet in National Forest Fire Response

Morocco has deployed eight Canadair CL-415s, 15 Turbo Thrush aircraft and two EC225 Super Puma helicopters as part of its national aerial response to forest fires during the summer season.

The CL-415 fleet, operated by the Royal Armed Forces (FAR), is based at the Royal Air Force’s 3rd Air Base in Kenitra. The Turbo Thrush aircraft and Super Puma helicopters are operated by the Royal Gendarmerie, giving Morocco a combination of amphibious fixed-wing, land-based fixed-wing and rotary-wing firefighting capability.

Their deployment forms part of a four-level national response system that determines when aerial assets are brought into an incident. Ground teams deal with first-level fires before Canadair aircraft are introduced at the second level. Royal Gendarmerie aviation units are mobilised for third-level incidents, while the fourth level allows for international assistance when additional resources are required.

Lieutenant Colonel Badr Bourassi, commander of the forest firefighting squadron at Kenitra, said rapid intervention depends on keeping both flying and technical crews ready throughout the fire season and maintaining close coordination between the different organisations involved.

The squadron participates in Morocco’s national forest fire campaign each year and has also flown missions overseas as part of cooperation with other countries.

At the centre of the heavy aerial response is the CL-415, whose amphibious capability allows crews to replenish from the sea, dams or lakes close to an active fire instead of returning to an airfield.

Canadair pilot Captain Anas Bel-haj said the scooping run takes about 12 seconds, during which the aircraft can take on more than 6,000 litres of water before returning directly to the fire.

That cycle is particularly important in terrain where access from the ground is limited. Morocco’s CL-415s are used over mountainous areas and dense forests, with each aircraft flown by a two-pilot crew.

The Royal Gendarmerie’s Super Puma helicopters have been equipped with an underslung firefighting tank carrying approximately 2,500 litres of water or retardant. Warrant Officer Fatima Zahra Afechkou said the system can be replenished from a nearby lake, dam or other water source in about 20 seconds.

Turbo Thrush aircraft add a lighter fixed-wing capability. According to pilot Warrant Officer Mohamed Diba, the aircraft can carry between 2,000 and 2,500 litres and remain airborne for approximately four and a half hours.

The three aircraft types operate in coordination with command centres, local authorities and ground crews so that aerial drops can be directed alongside the wider firefighting response.

Keeping that fleet available places a considerable maintenance burden on the supporting air bases, particularly because the Canadairs routinely operate in seawater and smoke.

Major maintenance is carried out outside the fire season and can take several months. Work includes inspection and refurbishment of landing gear, water tanks and engines, supplemented by daily and scheduled maintenance intended to address the effects of seawater salinity and smoke exposure.

Morocco has also developed the ability to undertake major CL-415 overhauls using local technical expertise.

Colonel Major Rachid Akkaoui, commander of the Royal Air Force’s General Support Air Base, said the base can now return aircraft to service in fully operational condition while meeting airworthiness and flight safety requirements.

“This capability, built entirely on local expertise, reduces aircraft downtime, ensures greater fleet availability and strengthens national sovereignty in the field of heavy aircraft maintenance,” he said.

That work extends into the aircraft’s electrical and avionics systems. Chief Warrant Officer Rahma Jomoua, an avionics systems technician specialising in the Canadair fleet, said major overhauls include refurbishment of avionics equipment and wiring associated with navigation, communication and control systems.

Components are inspected and repaired or replaced where necessary, while electrical connections are checked before the aircraft return to operational service.

The aviation response is supported by an extensive ground network. The National Agency for Water and Forests has more than 2,800 forest lookouts and rangers deployed across Morocco for surveillance and early warning, while rapid-response vehicles, Civil Protection equipment and specialised units operate alongside the aviation fleet.

With the CL-415s carrying more than 6,000 litres per sortie, the Super Pumas around 2,500 litres and the Turbo Thrush aircraft between 2,000 and 2,500 litres, Morocco enters each summer fire season with a layered aerial capability backed increasingly by its own heavy-aircraft maintenance expertise.